The Heartless Alpha

JASPERS POVContent (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

Alpha Warrick was staying in one of the unoccupied homes a little ways from the pack. I didn’t even bother to get the assholes first name; It didn’t matter to me. That man was nothing but a s***m donor in my opinion.

“Jasper, how could you do this? He has years of experience on you!” Mom wailed.

I sighed. She’d been crying nonstop since Alpha Douche left. For the first time, she was very unhappy with Violet, and she made that clear.

“Linda-“

“Don’t Linda me!” She snapped at Dad. “Our son is going to die!”

I scoffed. “Thanks for the confidence Mom.”

She glared at me. “This is a fight to the death Jasper. There is no yielding, no mercy. You’re taking on an Alpha. Do you not understand how ridiculous this is? You’ve all but signed your own death notice!”

“Mom, I’ve been training since I was eight. I can handle any weapon put in my hand, and I’m the best shot around.”

“He has a point.” Alpha Dimitri added. “Jasper was already on his way to becoming the lead warrior. I’d even make him a Beta, if it was my decision. But he wasn’t meant for those roles. He’s an Alpha.”

“This is different than training. You’ve never killed anyone before.” Mom whimpered.

I got down on one knee in front of the couch, catching her eyes.

“That man is tearing families apart-sending children to the battlefield. The only thing he’s fighting for is maintaining his lifestyle. I’m fighting for the freedom of the pack. I have way more motivation to win than he does. I will not lose this Mom. I give you my word.”

Silent tears ran down her cheeks, but she didn’t argue again. Everyone else was already consigned to the fact that I was Hell bent on this challenge. We’d agreed it would take place as soon as possible, which just happened to be tomorrow evening. Enough time to clear the training yard, and notify those who needed to be here. Namely, Alpha Warricks mate and son, his Beta and Gamma. I gave Mom a tight hug before I stood, but she caught my hand.

“If you die, I will kill you.” She growled.

Low laughs sounded at her words. “I know.” I chuckled.

I was ready for some alone time with my mate. However, just as I reached her, an unexpected figure appeared beside us. Literally, popped into the room out of thin air. I jumped about five feet back, pulling Violet with me.

“Hello everyone.”

“Grandpa!”

“Good Goddess Dad! I’ve told you to stop doing that!” Shouted Luna Lily.

Gideon simply laughed, looking highly amused.

“I seem to have a renewed interest in scaring people this way. I forgot how fun it was.”

“Yeah, hilarious.” I grumbled.

Gideon looked around. “Well, everyone is here. That’s good, saves time from having to round you all up.”

“What are you talking about?” Alpha Dimitri frowned.

Gideon took the seat next to my Mom, who was staring at him as if he was a demon that had appeared. He ignored her, focusing on his daughter.

“I reckon I beat Garrett home, as he just left my house. But I’ll still have to make this short.”

“Garrett went to your house?” Luna Lily asked.

Gideon nodded. “I could explain everything that happened, but the short version is he told me what was going on with him, his mate and Jasper here.” He gestured to me. “I came up with a solution, and he agreed.”

I was very confused, but the Alpha and Luna narrowed their eyes considerably.

“What solution did he agree to?”

“To take his memory of the conflict between him and his mate.”

His words were followed by a tense, stunned silence. Every single pair of eyes were centered on him, and a lot of jaws had dropped to the floor as well. I personally had no idea what to think. Garrett had no memory of that night anymore? What about Sophia?

“What about Sophia?” Violet asked my unspoken thoughts.

“She was there. She also agreed. Well, she actually asked for me to do it.”

“He… He agreed to let you take his memory?” Luna Lily whispered.

“Not all of them. Specifically the event that has caused so much torment, and anything resulting from it. Including finding out Sophia was his mate, and the resentment towards Jasper and Violet.”

“Wait.” Mom shook her head. “So… those two… don’t know they are mates anymore? What about their wolves?”

“The spell works on them too. When they see each other again, it will be like the first time never happened.” Gideon explained. Then he turned to the Alpha. “I would appreciate it if you refrained from punching me again. I’m not as young as I used to be.”

That comment was lost on me, but everyone turned to Alpha Dimitri. To my surprise, he didn’t look angry.

“Perhaps… it was for the best.”

Gideon raised one eyebrow, but Luna Lily rounded on her mate.

“What?!” She shouted. “You’re condoning this?!”

“Yes.”

“Why?!”

“Because it was killing our son Lily. He wasn’t himself, hasn’t been himself. If there is one thing I don’t want, it’s for him to turn out like me. Like I was. If I’d had the option of erasing my pain, my anger, I’d have taken it too. Maybe… Maybe we would have had a different start if I had. I won’t deny Garrett this opportunity to have that second chance.”

The Lunas posture shrank, her chest deflating. “I can’t argue with that, I guess.”

“So, nobody is going to hit me?” Gideon asked.

“I still might!” His daughter hissed.

“In that case-,” He stood, giving Violet a quick sidehug as he passed us, “- I’ll be going. Ta!”

He snapped his fingers, disappearing as easily as he had come. I really couldn’t deny that I liked the guy. He was amusing, if nothing else.

“So…” Violet wrinkled her nose as she thought. “Does this mean that Garrett and Sophia… think they’re still together? If neither of them remember that night… then they wouldn’t remember breaking up, right?”

“I think so?” The Luna sounded uncertain.

“But they haven’t been with each other in over a year. How are they going to-“

“Hey!”

Violet let out a high-pitched squeal at the sound of her brothers voice.

“Garrett!”

He looked around the room. I tensed, as usual, when his eyes landed on me. Instead of the anger and hatred I’d come to know, he simply nodded at me, no trace of his previous feelings in his eyes.

“Why is everyone in here?” He asked curiously.

“We were, uh, in a meeting.” Luna Lily said.

“With another Alpha.” Beta Ben added. He’d been so quiet, I’d almost forgotten he was here.

“Oh.”

Violet cleared her throat. “So, uhm. What’s going on? Did you need us for something?”

“Not really. I was just wondering where everyone was. Why are you guys acting so weird?”

Nobody seemed to know what to say; They were glancing at each other nervously. I stepped forward.

“They’re just nervous. I’m challenging Alpha Warrick tomorrow night.” I said.

Garrett stared at me. Again, there was no hint of anger.

“Really? Why?”

“Partly because he’s an a*****e. It’s a long story.”

“Huh. Well, good luck.”

“Thanks.”

“I’ll see you guys at dinner.”

And he left. A collective sigh was released from everyone present. And then…

“Get. Back. Here. NOW!”

Everyone winced as the Lunas’ voice sounded in our minds. Alpha Dimitri rubbed her shoulders, trying to calm her down. Clearly, she hadn’t meant to mind-link all of us, her emotions taking over.

Gideon popped back into the room, a good distance away from his daughter, who was seething with fury.

“He doesn’t remember anything!” She shouted at him.

“That is the point of the spell.” Gideon told her.

“Violet says they’ve been apart for over a year! He’s going to go crazy when he realizes he’s skipped more than a year, with no memory of how or why!”

“Lily, relax. Do you take me for a novice?”

“A novice? More like a fuc-“

“What exactly did you do?” Alpha Dimitri interrupted. He had his arms around the Luna, rocking back and forth slightly. It didn’t seem to be helping though.

“I replaced the memories he lost.” Before he was yelled at again, he held up his hand. “Let me explain. There was one memory where he was in his room, doing homework. He started thinking about that party, and couldn’t finish because he was so upset. I took the painful part of that. When Garrett looks back on that night, he will only remember being too tired to finish the homework and going to bed.”

“But what about the break up?” Violet asked. “They haven’t hung out, or been a couple in a long time. How are they going to explain that when they see each other again?”

“As far as they know, they did break up, but not the way it happened. It was a mutual break up, but they remained civil and friendly. They ended on good terms.” Gideon explained.

“So, you took me out of the picture completely?” I asked.

“Yes.”

I couldn’t deny the relief that brought me. Yes, I had f****d up. Badly. What I had done was now the cause of so much grief and stress within this family. How could I not feel happy that the anger and tension was erased, allowing everyone to move on finally?

“Thank you.” I told Gideon.

“I did not do it for your benefit.” He replied. “I did it for my grandson.”

“Understandable.”

Luna Lily stepped forward. “You better know what you’re doing.” She scolded.

“I do. Trust me Lily, this will work out.”

She rolled her eyes but it seemed the argument was over. It was already done, after all. I turned my attention to Violet again, rubbing my thumb over the back of her hand. I opened my mouth, but was once again interrupted.

“Jasper. Come here.” Alpha Dimitri ordered. I released his daughters hand, walking to his side.

“Yes Alpha?”

“How do you feel about a little training? Refresh your techniques, loosen up a little before tomorrow?”

My jaw almost dropped. “Train? You mean, with you?”

He chuckled. “Yes.”

I felt like jumping around like a little kid. Training with the Alpha? That was a privilege very, very few people got. I nodded enthusiastically.

“Absolutely Alpha!”

“Dad.” Violet joined us, frowning. “Don’t hurt him, okay?”

“Why do all you women not have any confidence in me?” I asked.

Violet hands went to her h**s. “You forget who trained me? I know what he can do. I want you back in one, whole piece.” She eyed Alpha Dimitri meaningfully.

“He will remain intact.” He promised. Then he turned to me. “You good to start now?”

“Yes Alpha.”

I turned to Vie, kissing her forehead.

“I wanted to spend time with you, but you can come and watch if you want.”

“Actually, I want to talk to you, Violet.” Luna Lily said behind me.

She frowned, until I gave her one more k**s.

“I’ll see you tonight then. ‘Kay?”

“Okay.”

With one last smile, I turned and followed Alpha Dimitri out of the room. Beta Ben was accompanying us, and I hoped he would join in on the training too. I focused on why I was doing this, the will to win at any cost. By tomorrow night, I would either be dead, or I would be the new Alpha of Silver Moon.